Israel threatens to seize parts of Gaza if hostages not released

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday threatened to seize parts of Gaza if Hamas does not release hostages.

This is as the militant group warned that the hostsges would return in coffins if Israel does not stop bombing the Palestinian territory.

A week since the military resumed operations following a January truce, Israel said two projectiles were fired from the Gaza Strip, with one intercepted and the other landing near the border, and with no immediate reports of any casualties or damage.

The rocket fire was said to have come a day after hundreds of Palestinians staged a rare protest against Hamas, chanting slogans against the Islamist movement and calling for an end to the war.

Shattering weeks of relative calm in the war brought by the fragile ceasefire, Israel last week resumed intense bombardment and ground operations across Gaza, while militants returned to launching rocket attacks.

According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, 830 people have been killed in the territory since Israel resumed its strikes on March 18.

No deaths have been reported on the Israeli side.

Israeli officials said the resumption of operations was meant to pressure Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages, after a stalemate in talks with mediators on extending the truce, which saw 33 Israeli captives freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Israel wanted an extension of the truce’s initial phase, while Hamas demanded talks on a second stage that was meant to lead to a permanent ceasefire.

Netanyahu told parliament that the more Hamas persists in its refusal to release our hostages, the stronger the pressure we will exert.

“This includes the seizure of territories, along with other measures I will not elaborate here. The more Hamas refuses to free the hostages, the more territory it will lose, which will be annexed by Israel,”; he said.